News On Japan

Nijo Castle 'Honmaru Goten' Repair Work Completed

Nijo Castle 'Honmaru Goten' Repair Work Completed

KYOTO - The Honmaru-goten Palace of Nijo Castle, a UNESCO World Heritage site in Kyoto, has completed its restoration work and will be open to the public for the first time in 18 years from September 1.

Originally completed during the Edo period, the Honmaru Goten was completely destroyed by a great fire in 1788. The current structure was relocated from the former Katsura Palace at the Kyoto Imperial Palace during the Meiji era. It is the largest surviving palace of its kind and has been designated an Important Cultural Property of Japan. Preservation and repair work was undertaken due to structural distortions caused by the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake, and the restoration was completed in March 2024. As a result, the palace will be open to the public for the first time in 18 years.

Kyoto Mayor Koji Matsui commented, "We strive to preserve, develop, and foster this precious cultural property so it may be cherished by both domestic and international tourists, and most importantly, the citizens of Kyoto."

The general public can visit the Honmaru Goten starting September 1. Viewing is by advance reservation only, with tickets available exclusively online from August 1.

Source: MBS

News On Japan
POPULAR NEWS

Typhoon No. 27 is forecast to develop into a very strong storm with a central pressure of 925 hectopascals and maximum sustained winds of 50 meters per second by October 5, threatening the Ogasawara Islands with powerful winds and high waves, while Typhoon No. 26 weakened into an extratropical cyclone at 3 a.m. on October 2 after passing east of the Kanto region.

Time magazine has named Shoko Kawata, the 36-year-old mayor of Yawata in Kyoto Prefecture, among its 100 most influential emerging figures worldwide, recognizing her decision to become Japan's first sitting mayor to take maternity leave and highlighting a political career that has taken her from municipal administration to national politics and the leadership of a city of nearly 70,000 people.

Tokyo authorities carried out the capital's first emergency shooting of a captured bear in Hachioji after an adult Asiatic black bear was found caught in a trap near a residential area about 8 kilometers from Takao Station.

Japan's total population, including foreign residents, stood at 122.97 million as of October 1, 2025, down 3.17 million from the previous census in 2020, marking only the third decline since the national census began in 1920.

A woman in her 50s with severe heart failure underwent what was described as the world's first surgery using commercially available iPS cell-derived heart muscle sheets at an Osaka hospital on September 29, marking the first practical use of the regenerative treatment.

MEDIA CHANNELS
         

MORE Travel NEWS

The 2026 Kishiwada Danjiri Festival brought generations together in Sakai-cho, where young men hauling a four-ton wooden float, veteran organizers guiding its course and a first-year rooftop performer worked side by side to carry forward a tradition dating back more than 300 years.

A spectacular sea of clouds appeared over Mount Oe in Fukuchiyama, Kyoto Prefecture, on the morning of September 30, creating a breathtaking landscape as the rising sun gradually turned the mist a deep crimson.

Tokyo recorded rain for a 34th consecutive day on September 29, setting a new all-time record for the capital, but the prolonged wet spell could finally end after Typhoon No. 26 passes the Izu Islands between the night of September 30 and the morning of October 1.

A popular temple in Fukuoka Prefecture has introduced a 500 yen admission fee for foreign tourists while allowing Japanese residents and foreigners living in Japan to enter free, a measure aimed at reducing disruptive behavior and helping protect the religious site.

Nagoya Castle welcomed crowds of domestic and international visitors on September 27, the final holiday before its adult admission fee doubles from 500 yen to 1,000 yen in October.

A new 220-meter suspension bridge has opened at Biwako Valley in Otsu, Shiga Prefecture, offering visitors a thrilling walk high above the mountains with panoramic views of Lake Biwa.

Giant whirlpools measuring more than 15 meters in diameter have appeared in the Naruto Strait in Tokushima Prefecture, drawing crowds of tourists as the autumn spring tide season brings some of the year's most spectacular tidal displays.

Japan's overnight trains are attracting renewed attention as railway companies introduce special services that combine affordable travel with exclusive experiences, highlighted by the country's first overnight Shinkansen service, which carried passengers from Osaka to Tokyo during the Silver Week holidays on September 22.